I'm new here. I've been poking around in this forum for about a week now, and have noticed frequent reference to the term "rub". I came to the forum to gain info on my ULH, and have benefited beyond my expectation. A rub doesn't sound like very desirable title or description. I hope I haven't met criteria for a "rub' by making this inquiry. As you can see I'm willing to take the risk just to know. I could imagine a comic like Jeff Foxworthy saying like, " You might be a rub if you...

Depending upon your own location and economic status, that can apply to as much as 99.9% of all riders on an American motorcycle that you might encounter.

So it is no more an accurate descriptive term than the insipid phrase: "old school".

Yesterday morning Pres. Bush was shown on the news sitting on an '06 promoting open trade agreements. I coulda swore the commentator called it a "chopper", but I really wasn't paying attention.
Still, I think the President certainly demonstrated for us what we mean by a RUB.

I kind of like Chris Hayne's description except for the high mileage. Maybe a 1000 over 10 years.

A RUB is someone in which the image comes before the love of motorcycling; and Lord knows, there's a lot of them.
When I saw Bush straddle the HD I could not hit the remote fast enough. Embarassing in a word.

44u hit it.
Ask yourself why you ride. If conveying some biker IMAGE is really important to you, if you are all about acting cool in your leathers, if you know absolutely diddly shit about your bike, if you've never spent even one late night twisting your own wrenches, you are a RUB and will never ride with me.

indianut wrote:Then what do you call the guys, who claim to know EVERYTHING about your Scooter, but haven't actually RIDDEN 25 miles in probably 15 years? How about C.R.U.B.'s? (Computer Rider Used-to-be Bikers?)

I would probably call this "Professional Motorcycle Mechanic."
When I owned a shop, it was always funny to ask other shop owners, "You going riding this weekend?"
That question was always answered with, "Bwwwaaaahahahahahah..."

Or..."Are you going to Daytona? (Or Sturgis, or Laconia....)"
"No. I'm going to sleep for 3 days after making sure everybody else gets to go."

As yet another poker run has parked outside my doors to refresh themselves at the tavern across the street, I come to the conclusion that the term "RUB" is somewhat outdated.

The masses that this discussion has described are not predominately rich, nor urban. The "biker" label is so blurred that it might as well be discarded as well.

The best descriptive term that comes to mind for these freshly-tattoo'd boutique patrons is "lifestylers".

At least for the weekend.

Gawd bless them anyway, as a select few of them will certainly mature to handle their own maintenance. Then maybe their own juices will make them get creative.
Others might seriously want to preserve the history that preceded them, by maintaining a real machine.

This is how our vintage motorcycle world shall be preserved. Otherwise, when we are in our graves, our heritage will only survive behind glass in some sterile museum, embalmed. (Probably with the footclutch toe'd up in the air.)